What Brothers Do
by Jynx999
Summary: Follow on from the reveal of the boy's adoption. One where they're not arguing.


Ethan left the ED with misty eyes and a dull ache in his abdomen. He knew that by cutting his brother from his life he wasn't only rendering him alone he was also doing the exact same to himself.

Cal was all the family Ethan had left, and vice versa. Except now Cal had found a new family, potentially anyway. Of course Ethan had questions, hundreds of them, but the one that stood out was why didn't his Mum tell him? He and her were so close, she was the only person he had ever completely trusted, he cared for her until the day she died and sacrificed so much to be with her during her final few months until he could no long afford to be out of work. The thought that she had lied to him for all that time hurt him more than he could express.

Making the last minute decision that it would be best to head back home, the hotel he had been staying in was costing a fortune and didn't even have hot water for a shower, as he arrived he noticed all the lights were still off. A sign Cal hadn't returned yet. Ethan hoped he would have enough time to eat and shower and disappear into his room without having to come face to face with Caleb again tonight.

He quickly dumped his things in his room and gabbed a pair of PJ bottoms before heading to the shower. After a good freshen up Ethan pulled on his bottoms and made for the kitchen to make something to eat. So far his plan was coming together quite nicely.

Mid way through cooking tea he heard a fumble with a lock then a light crash as if keys had been dropped, a quiet swear word and more fumbling followed then to Ethan's annoyance a slightly tipsy Cal walked in and was startled to see his brother standing there, semi-naked, in the kitchen having just poured his heated beans onto two slices of toast.

"Ethan..?" Cal spoke puzzled.

"Don't look so confused, I do live here. In fact, I own this flat." Ethan spoke placing the pan into a dish of soapy water.

Cal daren't speak, whatever he said was always going to be the wrong thing.

"I'm going straight to bed anyway." Ethan muttered grabbing his cutlery and plate and walking past his brother who stood looking at him.

"Hang on…" Cal spoke as he furrowed his eyebrows. "Your stomach."

Ethan frowned as he looked down at his own chest to see a bruise beginning to develop where his abdomen joined his ribcage.

"Yes well, you almost made me throw up in the middle of the ED with that punch so I'm not surprised." Ethan shrugged as if he didn't care.

"I didn't quite mean to do that much damage Ethan. You were in a rage; I couldn't stop you without doing something to snap you out of it." Cal defended himself.

Ethan looked at him for a few seconds before he sighed and turned to go into his room and closed his door behind him.

Cal closed his eyes tight closed, rejection was the one thing he hated, thee one thing he struggled to deal with. He reopened his eyes and with no chance to stop them tear began to roll down his cheeks. He went to his room and lay down on his bed and just cried.

All he wanted was Ethan to believe him, believe that everything he had done had been to protect him. To stop him from feeling what he was feeling on top of everything else he was going through. He didn't want to be the one who completely broke him.

He hadn't run, he always ran but this time he didn't. He had stayed and he had faced this all and he had tried to do his best. In one sense he should have been proud of himself for managing but he was just so disappointed in himself for handling it all wrong that he couldn't.

Cal must have been laid crying on and off for a good hour when he heard his bedroom door creak open a little and a small beam of light shone across the room. He rolled over to find his brother peering around the door.

"Can I come in?" Ethan spoke and Cal nodded and wiped his eyes quickly and flicked the dim lamp on at his bedside table and sat himself up sniffing slightly.

Ethan sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Cal and just sighed.

"I am so angry Cal, don't assume because I am here I'm not." Ethan told him.

Cal nodded his head as the boys made eye contact. He could see that Ethan's eyes were red and puffy, probably not unlike his own.

"But I need some answers." Ethan told him.

"Anything you want to know Ethan. I will tell you." Cal agreed.

"Just tell me. From the beginning, everything that happened." Ethan asked.

Cal nodded his head and started the story from the top. From the DNA results to the way Charlie found out, to him visiting her and then to when Ethan found out.

"But Ethan, I know you won't believe me but you looked as if you were about to break down at any moment. You started on a man twice your size in the middle of the ED, that's not you Ethan. I didn't want to add to that." Cal told him.

"You can understand why I find that hard to believe Caleb." Ethan told him.

"Of course I do Ethan, all out lives I have always loved to wind you up. Bordering on bullying at times when we were younger. I am fully aware of what I put you through. But I've grown up now Ethan." Cal told him. "And I am more than aware that you are the most important person in my life."

"I have stood by you Cal, I have done everything for you. I stayed and I cared for Mum and I watched her deteriorate until the day she died when you swung in and held her hand when the moment came." Ethan explained. "That woman was everything to me and now I have found out that it was all a lie. Not only that but I now have yet another mother that is going to die imminently, and to add on top of that I could also have inherited that condition. Plus if by a miracle I haven't then chances are you could have it to."

"It's 50/50 for both of us. Neither of us could have it, one of us could or both of us could. All situations are equally possible." Cal told him. "Believe me when I tell you that my main concern was you."

"Oh Cal. What a mess." Ethan sighed tiredly.

"I know. I'm sorry." Cal apologised.

"I do believe you." Ethan told him. "I don't think you've made the best decisions but I don't believe you've done this maliciously."

"I haven't…" Cal shook his head.

"No. I know. Our whole lives have been a lie." Ethan closed his eyes.

"It hasn't. Mum loved us, she brought us up. Whether she gave birth to us or not we were her boys and she loved us as her own." Cal spoke. "Our birth Mum wanted us too, she was just too ill to cope. It wasn't her decision to give us up. We were taken. We have two families that wanted to love us."

"When you put it like that." Ethan laughed ironically. "It's strange, I'm not angry anymore, I just feel as though someone has died and there is more to come."

"It's like grief, something I don't handle well at the best of times. Which is why I need you." Cal admitted.

"We still have each other, whatever happens." Ethan smiled at him slightly. "It's what Brothers do."


End file.
